Smile for Me
by WhiteWisteria
Summary: There are only so many times one could accept being rejected, time after time, day after day.She was so tired. So, Sakura Mikan washed her hands off Hyuuga Natsume. NxM
1. Lost

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**Smile for Me**

SnowMirage

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**To Littledoggy**

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**One was as stubborn as a mule. The other had the intelligence of a Styrofoam.**

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**Chapter one: Lost**

There are only so many times one could accept being rejected, time after time, day after day.

She was so tired. So damn tired.

So, Sakura Mikan washed her hands off Hyuuga Natsume.

* * *

Many things have changed since the fateful day a certain brunette had her skirt whisked off by a smirking flame caster and screamed bloody murder.

New school year, splitting of classes and they had taken their first steps into the majestic building that housed the high school division.

Some things also never change, like the fact that Natsume was still in the same class as Mikan, and that Natsume only had to utter a word to get Mikan utterly mad, or the fact that Natsume still insisted on being alone.

Sunlight streamed through from the tall glass windows that graced one wall of the airy classroom. Fans whirled lazily overhead, churning a much welcomed cool breeze that battled valiantly against the heat of summer.

Excited chatter and laughter filled the classroom as the students cluttered in their individual groups, making most of the time they had before the first class of the day started. For these teenagers who have spent most of their lives living together, there was absolutely nothing that they couldn't talk about. And most naturally, the talk turned to the longest standing gossip to circulate the academy grounds.

Academy heartthrob Hyuuga Natsume and klutz Sakura Mikan.

Slouching in one corner of the classroom, Hyuuga Natsume ignored the attempts of several girls trying to make friendly talk to him. Instead, tipping his head backwards, he studied the ceiling above without much interest. It looked like any other ceiling in the school, white and blank. Like his life.

"I heard that Mikan was the one who broke up with him." The whisper carried over the talking of the students.

Natsume rolled his eyes. Inwardly, he snorted in disgust. _We were never together, for that matter._

There was no mistaking who the 'him' referred to. After all, the queer relationship between Mikan and Hyuuga Natsume was the subject of much speculation. And why wouldn't it be? After all, she had been the only one able to tease a smile, however small, out of the flame caster and the only female presence he tolerated around him for more than one minute.

And of course, it had brought about the highly entertaining news that they were a couple.

Then, high school had dawned. And Mikan simply stopped being around Natsume.

No one ever knew, and Mikan never talked, simply smiled and changed the topic neatly. Natsume burned anyone who asked.

So it simply remained a rather interesting topic to nimble on, for these teenagers who had nothing more to do, coped up and shut from the world as they were.

The door slid open smoothly, causing some conversation to lull before continuing.

"Hey Natsume." The quiet greeting reached his ears as someone sat next to him.

"Ruka-kun!" The enthusiastic greetings from their female classmates interrupted even before Ruka had managed to get his whole sentence out.

"Ruka." He nodded in acknowledgement before shooting the blonde a look.

Ruka hadn't changed much except for the fact that he no longer carried Usagi around with him. His good looks had matured over the years, even though he kept the boyish haircut. A light blush stained his cheeks as he tried to politely greet all the girls who were falling over their feet to reach him.

"Go away." He drawled out, sending a look to the girls.

In this classroom, just like before, Hyuuga Natsume's words were rule. Subsided, and disappointed, the girls drifted away, leaving the duo alone.

In the relative quietness that followed, one sentence broke through loud and clear.

"Nah, it was Natsume who broke up with her."

Ruka slanted a look towards Natsume, who simply continued staring indifferently towards the ceiling.

"Natsume," He started tentatively as he always does when broaching the sensitive topic about Mikan.

"Don't." The crisp word stopped him.

Ruka never knew what happened between the two of them. He only knew it happened the day he had found Mikan crying outside in the night, under the sakura tree, blood splatters on her night gown.

He was concerned. Yet, all he could do was to stand by one side. And watch.

The door eased open then, and a beaming brunette entered the room.

"Ohayo minnasan!" She sang out jauntily, a wide grin on her face.

At seventeen, Mikan hadn't changed much. Less of a klutz perhaps, still as absent minded as she had been before. Her determination to help others had quickly won over for her a lot of friends and the relentless sense of happiness she exuded was still there, like a gold aura around her.

She headed over to her seat right in front of the ones occupied by Natsume and Ruka, pausing to greet the two.

"Ruka-pyon!" She greeted Ruka cheerfully, still keeping the nickname she had given to him during elementary division.

"Mikan." Ruka smiled back.

Amber eyes trailed over almost hesitantly to Natsume, who was still looking determinedly at the ceiling.

"Ohayo Natsume." Her greeting the flame caster was much more subdued, her smile having waned slightly at Natsume resolute disinterest in her.

Crimson eyes flickered once to her before Natsume nodded once, coldly.

Mikan turned back and sat down in her seat, a shred of sadness in her amber eyes. Almost immediately, a crowd of Mikan's own friends gathered around, chattering and laughing.

Ruka couldn't help but notice the number of guys making up the crowd around Mikan.

Together with time, Mikan had flourished from a flat-chested girl who had her panties seen more times than she could count with her ten fingers to a slender teenager with a beautiful smile. She had allowed her long auburn hair to flow free instead of tying it up in the customary ponytails.

Sakura Mikan was undeniably pretty, both inside and out.

And Ruka wondered if Natsume cared.

"Ruka. Who is teaching?" Natsume drawled out.

"Narumi." Most of the teachers who had been with them through elementary school had followed them up to high school/

Even before Natsume replied, Ruka knew that Natsume planned on skipping the lesson. He knew that Natsume disliked the blonde teacher and had made it a point to skip his lessons.

"Let's go."

There was a loud scraping of metal against cement as Natsume pushed away from his desk and marched towards the door.

Ruka followed behind, though he did send an apologetic look to the searching amber eyes that followed their path.

Mikan simply smiled sadly, and watched Natsume go.

* * *

"You are staring, Mikan."

The quiet observation had the brunette immediately turn a bright red and issuing a loud protest that one usually gave when one was guilty.

Imai Hotaru, principal student, Student Council Head-candidate simply raised a brow and bit calmly into the soft bread of her sandwich.

They were seated at a white picnic table in a quiet corner of the school during lunch break. Now that they had been segregated into different classes, Mikan insisted on spending what little time they had remaining together.

Usually, their small group consisted of the old elementary class B people, including Iinchou, Anna, Nonoko, Koko, Kitsuneme, Mochu, Sumire and occasionally Ruka and Youichi.

But today, it had whittled down to only the two of them.

"I wasn't staring." The brunette got out adamantly.

Hotaru simply lifted her gaze knowingly to land on an area not far away, where a sakura tree stood and where a raven-haired flame caster sat together with his usual crowd of admirers.

"Really." Hotaru sipped from her cup as she commented uninterestingly.

The blush on Mikan's cheeks deepened and she concentrated on finishing the sandwich she held in her hand.

"Patch things up with him, Mikan. Isn't that what you are good at?"

Hotaru noticed the shred of unhappiness that flirted across Mikan's expressive amber eyes before the brunette forced a smile onto her face and replied, "He hates me."

Hotaru decided the hot tea in her cup deserved to be dumped straight on Hyuuga Natsume's head.

"Hyuuga Natsume hates everyone." Hotaru pointed out matter-of-factly. "Except for that Nogi and Youichi anyway."

"You don't understand Hotaru. He really hates me."

Hotaru had seen the look in Natsume's eyes when he thought no one was looking, staring at the back of Mikan's head as she was surrounded by her suitors. And it wasn't hate she saw.

"He prefers their company to mine anyway."

The 'they' referred to the girls who crowded around Natsume like bees around honey.

Hotaru pondered on whether to tell Mikan Natsume looked more like he would rather take to jumping off a cliff than being accompanied in such a manner.

One glance at the despondent picture the brunette made, Hotaru knew no matter what she said then would not matter at all.

"Hotaru, Mikan, did you hear?"

The excited cry broke through the little tableau. Both glance up to find Anna hurrying towards them, panting heavily as she stopped suddenly, hands palm down on the table.

"Anna?" Mikan prompted, blinking in surprise.

"Didn't you hear? Natsume got a girlfriend!"

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**A/N: Yup, new story -cowers-. I'll update the others soon :) Tell me what you think )**


	2. Beginnings of a Beginning

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**.:Chapter Two: Beginnings of a Beginning:.**

My sincerest thanks to (in no particular order): Junkiie, Arahi Sakura, hineko 16131, Typh, jeje-chan, yamishun, foresaken 3093, littledoggy, clariecandy, bubblegum-princess07, megumi natsuyama, glenda23, Shiori's Notebook, tyne16, -kell-36-, li'l kitty, SarcasticHeartlessAngel, yooyeen, Aelita 18 and emrevolemina.

Thank you for waiting so patiently.

* * *

The chair fell over onto to grass with a muffled thud.

Somehow, without so much as a thought, Mikan had stood up the moment Anna had mentioned the words 'Natsume' and 'girlfriend' in the very same breath.

"Mi-mikan-chan?" Anna blinked quizzically.

Hotaru simply revealed an all knowing smile on her face as she took a sip of the piping hot tea.

Belatedly, Mikan realized what she had done. Blushing furiously, and thoroughly annoyed with herself for the moment of weakness, she pulled up the chair and sat down quickly as though nothing incriminating had just happened.

"Uh, muscle ache," She fibbed weakly, giving Anna the brightest and fakest smile possible.

_Why should I even care that Natsume-baka has got a girlfriend?_

She ignored the little tell-tale smirk Hotaru had on her face when she had mentioned the 'muscle ache' and simply gestured for Anna to take the available seat opposite her, hoping that the pink-haired cooking alice would not be able to see through the lie. Just in case, she deliberately shifted her position so that her back was facing the bane of her life and his crowd of annoying worshippers.

Quickly acquiescing, Anna sat down and continued on with her earlier vibrancy, excitedly revealing to Mikan and Hotaru the latest juiciest gossip that had come to Alice Academy these days.

Distantly hearing only half the words coming from Anna's mouth, Mikan was quietly berating herself for the slip. After all, Hyuuga Natsume meant _nothing _to her. Absolutely nothing. Nada. Zilch. Even a speck of dust mattered more than him.

So, why was she trying so hard to convince herself of that very fact?

Idly, she toyed, rather aggressively as she fought with her inner-conscious, with the small silver star-shaped stud on her left ear, a gift from Tsubasa-senpai before his graduation from the academy.

_He _was the one who told her to go away. _He _was the one who trampled all over her feelings as though they were worth nothing. She was better off without him.

Yet, she wondered absently the reason as to why she was suffering so much, why her heart ached whenever he ignored her.

"Do I smell smoke?" Hotaru commented genially with a raise of her eyebrow. Then, a moment later, her eyes widened just a fraction as she continued," Do I see _fire?_"

Sure enough, the acrid smell of smoke met their noses.

Twisting in her chair rather abruptly towards the direction of Hotaru's gaze, Mikan found herself staring at a rather spectacular sight.

Screaming females were running away, soot and dirt covering their uniforms and faces as a veritable fire licked away at the old sakura tree Natsume and fangirls had been at a moment ago.

In the midst of it all, where the flames had cleared a neat circle, stood the protagonist with his fists clenched, crimson eyes simply snapping out ire.

Sakura Mikan recognized that look. And feared.

God bless the unfortunate one who had incurred Natsume's displeasure.

The only time she had seen it had been when Persona had been toying with their lives, and Natsume had snapped. It was the first time Mikan had seen such fury in the raven-haired alice wielder and a moment later, the house they were in had burned down to a crisp.

And soon after, Natsume had doubled over from the stress his alice was putting on his body. Mikan knew that within, every time Natsume used his alice, it was eating slowly away at him like a cancer within.

Ignoring the startled call from Anna, Mikan got up from her seat and headed at a run to where the fire was.

The other people nearby had already caught sight of the fire and the thick black billowing smoke being emitted. The panicked ones tried desperately to put out the rapidly spreading fire by dumping what liquid they had on hand, only to hear the sweet sizzle of flames vaporizing the liquid away.

The rational ones meanwhile knew that only other alices could put out Natsume's fire, and waited rather edgily for the rescue to come in the form of counter-fire alices as some tried to hold the spreading fire at bay.

Students and teachers started to file out of the middle school branch building, drawn by the clamor; others drew their classroom windows wide open and leaned out for a clearer view.

The sudden lull in the energy in the surrounding sphere went unnoticed by many. Mochu, who had been levitating for a clearer view, suddenly found himself plummeting through thin air, saved only by his fast reflex which left him hanging rather precariously on a window ledge.

Those who had been fighting the fire suddenly found their alices inactivated, and despite their best efforts to use their alices again, found their efforts futile.

The raging fire doused out in a blink of the eye, leaving behind wisps of smoke sadly weaving their way to the skies above and a very beleaguered and charred tree. The only place spared any harm was the area around Natsume, the lush green of the surviving blades of grass a sad companion to its charred cousins.

Eyes fixed on the silent slender brunette standing just a distance away from the tree, her hand outstretched almost absently.

The crowd had went silent, a dead, eerie and unnatural silence that weighed heavily on one's ears. Attention was focused heavily on the couple facing each other.

Something close to annoyance snapped in the blood red irises of Natsume's eyes. He twisted his hand once, in a familiar action to conjure up his alice. A weak flame flickered for a moment before dying out limply.

Narrowed crimson eyes shot up to fixed on the cause of it all.

Sakura Mikan stood unfazed under Natsume's pressuring and poisoned gaze, a look that had sent grown men crying for sanctuary, their tails between their legs as they ran for safety.

She held her alice active steadily, a far cry from her elementary school years when she could barely control or even activate her nullification alice. From the painfully awkward and bullied no star she once was, Mikan had admirably raised her status to a respectable three star.

An impatient sound passed by Natsume's lips before he bad-temperedly shoved his hands into the pocket of his pants. Turning on his heel, he stalked away.

At the same time, the widespread effect of Mikan's nullification alice fell away. Alices reignited, with Mochu one of the happiest as he hoisted himself to safety.

Unwittingly, the watching crowd released a breath they have been holding in unanimously and the tension lifted visibly.

The crowd begun to disperse, having witness all the excitement they could stomach for one day. Misaki-sensei, his love for plants over powering him, raced rather comically to the burnt sakura tree. Almost immediately, in reaction to the plant pheromone being released, the sakura tree started budding pale pink leaves on the charred braches.

Mikan's worried, amber-tinted gaze never left Natsume as he neared her, head deliberately tilted to avoid her gaze, shoulder close enough to brush by hers.

"Natsume," She broached tentatively, hesitantly, half-thinking that the fire alice would probably ignore her, just like he had for a few months.

She never expect him to stop in his steps when he was in line with her, and for him to tilt his head to where she was, crimson eyes impatient as he drawled out insolently, "What?"

Startled, she stumbled as she worded out her question, "Ano.. ano.. Are you hurt anywhere?"

As soon as the words left her lips, she winced, a mixture of embarrassment and at how badly it sounded.

_Stupid, stupid! Why did I just have to ask that? Aren't I admitting out right that I still care about him? _

Berating herself, she caught herself just in time and simply waited there stonily for his scathing answer.

Something flickered within the depths of Natsume's crimson irises.

Without a change in his stony expression, he bit out rather nastily, "What is it to you, baka youjo?"

The last two words were said to mock and hurt, and hurt they did.

Masking her face and ignoring the twinge in her heart, Mikan lifted her head and replied haughtily, "Nothing. It doesn't matter to me anyway."

It was said lightly enough for the barb to slid off harmlessly, and one of the worse lies Mikan had weaved. Natsume never bothered to acknowledge it and simply continued staring at her with his enigmatic eyes.

Unnerved, and feeling as though he could see right through her flimsy excuse, Mikan spotted Hotaru some distance away, disinterestedly waiting for her.

Seeing her breakaway, she grabbed onto the chance and hurriedly muttered that Hotaru was waiting for her before walking away quickly, resisting the urge to break into a run however tempting. Before she could though, a hand hard as granite clamped onto her upper arm forcefully, jerking her backwards.

"Don't you have anything else you want to say?"

Amber clashed with steely crimson and held fast in silence.

"No." The single word seemed to echo heavily in the atmosphere, and weighed heavily on her heart.

_You are such a liar, Sakura Mikan._

Something flashed in Natsume's eyes before he released her captive arm.

Uneasy, Mikan broke eye contact and scurried away before she lost the chance to.

She never saw the clench of Natsume's fist or the single word that he spoke to her back.

"Coward."

* * *

"Something must be done about Hyuuga Natsume."

The heavily worded sentence filled the council room where the top students of Alice Academy were gathered for their weekly meetings.

Imai Hotaru sat serenely near the end of the long table, tinkering with a small octagonal prototype in her hands. Beside her, Tobita Yuu, her fellow principal student, pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose in a habitual gesture, a worried light in his light olive green eyes.

"I agree. The fire incident this week was uncalled for, and resulted in the injury of many innocents." Makito Kei, a triple star student from Dangerous ability class brought up, his steely gray eyes flashing assertively.

"Ano," Yuu piped up, a furrow between his eyebrows, "there were only minor injuries inflicted, and the fire was settled quickly."

"How would you know that _he_ wouldn't burn down the school next?" Disdain was evident in Makito's eyes as he snapped.

"Natsume-kun would not do anything that would endanger other people!"

Slapping his palms on the smooth oak table, Makito half-rose from his seat as he replied skeptically. "Oh? You must be a fool to believe in that _thing_. Don't you know how many people he has killed without batting an eyelash as the glorious Black Cat?"

Murmurs rose around the room.

"Makito. That is enough." The cool voice who had addressed everyone from the start interrupted. The cold authority in the voice demanded respect and attention. The striking female standing at the head of the table was no other than the high school division's representative and head of the student council, Mari Hina.

Hotaru had been silently observing the event from one side until now. She set the little prototype onto the table calmly.

The action brought attention to the striking violet-eyed genius who voiced out coldly with a raise of her brow, "May I offer a solution?"

At the nod from Mari, she continued, a ghost of a smile playing on her lips.

"Let Sakura Mikan watch over Hyuuga Natsume."

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**to be continued... **


	3. Handcuffed

Author's note: currently unedited. Midnight wishes first edited version is up. please point out the mistakes you do spot.

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**III. Handcuffed**

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Sakura Mikan was fuming.

For the past hour, Hyuuga Natsume had been following her around, through the cafeteria, through class where he deliberately sat next to her (the gall!) _and _smirked openly when she wrote down what he deemed was an idiotic answer for her algebra assignment. The whole day, he had been a scant meter away from her. And it was getting on her nerves.

It was the last straw when he sat down without so much as a by-your-please next to her with his special star dinner set complete with the highest grade sashimi topped off with caviar in a crystal carved bowl, red wine and medium-done steak. Suddenly, her three-star meal, which had looked mouth watering an instant ago, seemed dowdy.

_Ohhhhhhh_, he was doing it just to spite her. She just knew it.

There was just something horribly wrong with the tableau. Just yesterday, their conversation had barely been civil to say the least. Three months ago, they were barely seen in each others' company and now, Hyuuga Natsume was as persistent as a leech. It was just so _wrong_.

When that blasted boy cocked his head slightly, unsubtly comparing the quality of their meals and had the audacity to smirk, it was the last straw. And Sakura Mikan was not afraid to let the raven haired boy know it.

Hackles rose, Sakura Mikan jerked up from her seat and accused extremely loudly in the face of the suddenly extremely quiet cafeteria, a trembling finger pointed towards to blasé looking male beside her.

"This is the last straw!"

The last word ricocheted off the walls of the wide, airy room, echoing disembodied like the after effects of an earthquake.

Vestiges of annoyance appeared in the crimson eyes that slowly lifted to fix on her. There was just something in that look that made her feel as though she had just pranced around the room in a tutu and declared her love for all frog-loving teachers in the world. She didn't cower (though she did visibly shrink back slightly); Sakura Mikan was made of stronger stuff, anti-Natsume-glare stuff for that matter.

One of his perfectly arched eyebrows rose as he opened his mouth.

From what she had learnt the hard way, combine that skeptical look and Hyuuga Natsume ready to speak, nothing good would ever come out of that killer mouth ladies wax lyrical poetry over and what was she saying? Damn, she did not just think that Hyuuga Natsume had a killer mouth. Hyuuga Natsume's mouth looked like a pair of sausages! Yes! That was it! But why was she having such a hard time convincing herself?!

In the meantime, Natsume had finally taken it upon himself and drawled out rather scathingly, "There is a whole bunch over there."

Mikan blinked stupidly. What was he talking about? Had he gone daft? If he had, it might explain his less than normal behavior.

Obviously sensing the lack of understanding oozing from the brunette now stoning in front of him, Natsume pointed languidly towards his front.

Amber eyes followed his finger over the heads of the student body (who were now watching the on-going interaction with a stillness and eagerness that was absent in their daily behavior in class) and to the innocent bunch of multi-colored straws placed neatly on the checkered buffet table at the end of the room.

Realization hit.

Amidst the snickers that rose from various parts of the room, and the smile Ruka was trying and failing to cover, Sakura Mikan gaped. And commented half-disbelievingly:

"That was so _lame_."

The prodigy only smirked in response and took a sip of his wine.

"You asked."

And that was that.

Like always, when Hyuuga Natsume deemed a subject was over, the whole school would deem the subject over. And left Sakura Mikan gaping like a fish out of water.

It took her a moment to remember the exact reason she had started the conversation with the someone she had swore to never speak to months ago. And it brought out all the pent-up anger within her, both from this incident and from the painful past.

"Why?" She gritted out, amber eyes trained on the nonchalant male who always had the means to ruffle her feathers the wrong way.

The heavy blanket of silence that had lifted a moment before washed over like a wave again.

Natsume stood up then.

He towered over her easily; his lanky frame slouched in a lazy posture, hands tucked into his pockets. His head of raven black swept the top of his stiff starched collar.

_He needs a trim. _Mikan thought absently. She didn't know where the thought came from, certainly not on purpose.

He looked down at her, an arrogant look he had mastered over the years, crimson eyes undecipherable as his voice, soft as silk, flowed over her skin.

"Why what?"

_Are you speaking of the present… or of the past?_

It was almost as though someone had thrown a switch. Their surroundings darkened until all that was left beside them were mere vestiges of shadows, until the murmurings around them had died down to a pleasant buzz. Only the two of them remained within the glaring light, amber and crimson clashing.

It was a double-edged question, and Mikan knew it made references to the double meanings in her own question.

_Why did you push me away?_

She looked away, refusing to bend to his will.

He lifted a hand to her chin, cupping it roughly, tilting it up to meet his gaze. She resisted, not wanting him to see the weakness in her, not wanting to _lose_.

She expected him to continue to force her to look at him. She didn't expect him to let her go with a grunt.

Sakura Mikan blinked as she saw a fist collide with Natsume's side.

The moment was lost, throwing back the world around them in a dizzying array of colors. And it was thus why she took a few minutes later to realize that the fist belonged to a certain someone standing beside them.

Makito Akio.

She had got to know the lanky ice alice from the Dangerous Ability Class through Tsubasa senpai, who had found a close friend in the easy going and gentle-natured ice alice.

Akio was surprisingly protective of Mikan, especially after Tsubasa left the school. Mikan didn't protest, perhaps because deep within, she really missed Tsubasa, and that Akio was a good friend.

As he drew back him arm for another hit, Mikan finally moved. "Akio-senpai no!" She cried out as she latched onto the latter's arm even as Natsume prepared to retaliate.

"Damnit, let go of me Mikan!" Makito Akio's usually calm and smiling grey eyes were a hard steel-grey, his mouth drawn in a tight line. "He hurt you, look at this bruise!" His eyes softened as he reached out a hand and pressed a gentle thumb onto where Natsume's hand had been a moment ago.

Mikan flinched from the unexpected pain that the gentle touch had brought up. Amber eyes shot up in surprise to Natsume, who simply stood there unrepentant.

"Akio-senpai," Another pleading tug to his sleeve. "The bruise will heal over time. Please. Natsume didn't mean it."

"Hiding behind a woman, Makito?" At that moment, Mikan wanted to punch Natsume.

Akio gave a growl of fury and took a step forward. Those nearest to him flinched and shivered as the temperature dropped drastically.

"Natsume stop it!" Mikan yelled out, furious at the raven-haired male for provoking Akio. "Akio-senpai, please. Stop. I don't want you to get hurt."

There was a tense moment as the two males glared at each other, each unwilling to back out first.

Perhaps reacting to the plea in her tone, or that Mikan's weight was preventing him from doing considerable damage to the cocky flame alice, Akio relaxed his guard.

Visible weight lifted from the watching audience.

"I won't fight with you over this, Hyuuga. But I want you to get away from Mikan."

Bated breaths.

Natsume lifted a brow. And took a few lazy steps back.

The crowd that had gathered behind him parted obediently like the Red Sea.

He pulled his left hand out from his pocket and lifted it up. Mikan saw the chunky bracelet that encircled his wrist, glinting a polished silver in the artificial light. And realized with a start it was an exact copy of the one on her wrist, of the one Hotaru had given her just this morning.

"Hey! That is the exact copy of my bracel-Ommph!" Mikan had barely started when Natsume jerked his hand backwards rather violently…and Mikan followed suit and met the ground in an unsightly heap at Natsume's feet.

Moaning in pain, Mikan lifted her head from the leather of Natsume's shoe and shook it furiously, trying to rid of the dizzying sensation that filled her. One minute she was just standing on her two feet; the next moment, she felt as though her wrist was going to be jerked out of its socket.

Natsume's voice was extremely patronizing and sarcasm-laden as he drawled lazily, "As you can see, _Makito_, 'getting away' is an unrealistic dream."

Mikan snapped.

"NATSUME!" She scrambled up to her feet, one hand reaching up to massage the imprint of Natsume's shoes on her cheeks, the other pointed accusingly at the raven-haired fire alice.

"YOU…YOU PANSY STALKER!"

Natsume's eyebrows rose until they disappeared behind his far too long fringe at the rather unusual accusation being thrown his way.

"Pansies?"

"THAT IS NOT THE POINT! WHAT DID YOU DO?" The high-pitched shriek from the brunette had the crowd cringing and edging back quickly.

In the face of the thunderous brunette, Natsume remained infuriatingly calm.

"What did _I _do?" Amusement tilted the edges of Natsume's mouth into a smirk. "Why don't you ask your _best friend_, dimwit?"

"MY……" Mikan trailed off as realization struck.

Who had given her the bracelet this morning?

Who had smiled and said it looked good on her?

Who had made sure that the bracelet was properly snapped on and locked?

_Imai Hotaru _did.

Mikan gaped.

And amber eyes zoomed in on the quiet _best friend _who had been calming sipping tea at one corner throughout the whole brawl.

The too-quiet best friend.

There was a clatter as Imai Hotaru placed the said tea cup back onto the saucer, and lifted her striking violet eyes up to the disbelieving ones of Sakura Mikan.

"I did tell you about it. You were just too distracted by the Howalons on my table."

"That is ……." Mikan paused, a dismayed look on her face. "You _trapped _me with howalons?"

Hotaru blinked before saying matter-of-fact. "Not so. I was merely carrying out orders. In the fastest way possible."

"I … I am your _best friend_!" The last came out as an accusing wail. "How could you do _this _to me?"

The surrounding crowd stepped back cautiously as they felt the numbing power of Mikan's alice seeping out from her.

Hotaru got up from her chair smoothly, pushing the cup away from her as she did so.

"Believe me. You will thank me for this one day. Oh, and remember, keep within three meters of one another, or, as Hyuuga kindly demonstrated, landing on your butt is never fun."

With an enigmatic smile, Hotaru left the cafeteria without a backwards glance, her exit timed nicely with the ring of the bell signaling the start of classes.

_Thank her? THANK HER? _

Sakura Mikan though not, especially when she was jerked rudely by the invisible link between her and the abominable Hyuuga and the curt order that came from the devil's mouth itself.

"Move it, baka youjo."

As she stumbled and half-ran after the retreating figure that was Hyuuga Natsume, she could only smiled reassuringly at the worried Akio senpai and wonder if her life after this would be hell on earth.

And promptly fell flat onto the smooth ground with a painful thud as Hyuuga Natsume, with a terrifying smirk on his face, jerked the handcuff far out of the range.

Sakura Mikan didn't wonder after that.

She _knew _it would be hell.

* * *

_**to be continued...**_


End file.
